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"Hey…Izuku…I...I just wanted to let you know that I made it…"
"..."
"Yeah, U.A., just like we both promised each other, all those years ago…"
"..."
"Nah…I still don't have a hero name yet, but I do have that costume design you gave me, I'm gonna submit it, hopefully it gets passed."
"..."
"Yeah…oh, and guess what!? All Might's gonna be teaching at U.A. this year! Can you believe that?"
"..."
"It'll be awesome…I only wish…you should be here to see it too, Izuku…"
"..."
"Yeah…I'll keep my promise…I'll be the best hero I can be," Katsuki said as he rubbed his eyes with his sleeve before turning around and leaving the quiet stone behind.
Rest In Peace
Midoriya Izuku
2XXX-2XXX
Beloved Son and Friend
Katsuki bowed his head as he left the graveyard, he'd be starting school in the next few days, and he doubted he'd have time to visit his friend that often.
"Kacchan…I don't feel so good…" He hears Deku say before hearing a clatter. Annoyed, Katsuki turns around to mock the boy.
"What are you talking bout this time you worthles- DEKU!?" Katsuki yells in shock, as he sees the boy coughing up blood.
"I'm sorry…but the disease just keeps progressing, it's like his body is just…completely shutting down," The doctor says, and Katsuki can hear the rumors, about a quirkless body perhaps just shutting down.
Idiots.
But finally…
"Be the best hero you can be for the both of us…alright Kacchan?" Katsuki hears for the last time as the hand in his goes limp.
All those years wasted, times where he could have at least supported Izuku, stood by his friend and greatest supporter, all of it thrown away because of his worthless pride.
Katsuki was not a good friend.
And he wasn't a good person.
But damn if he wasn't going to become the best hero for Izuku.
"Sierra-115, reporting for duty, sir," The soldier said as he saluted All Might who grimaced before telling him to remain at ease.
He still remained at attention and All Might sighed.
He hated using the title but until they could fully wipe the programming and indoctrination, direct orders needed to have the formality.
"Sierra-115, I'm going to be heading to U.A. to begin teaching, you've already been briefed about my condition, as such, I feel it best to help the next generation become better so that they can eventually rise up and take my place…by suggestion of Principal Nezu, you will be joining me."
The slightest tilt of a helmet, his armor having been mostly repaired by this point, gave away 115's reaction.
"Sir, request to speak freely."
"Granted, as always, Izuku."
"Sir, I have no qualifications in teaching."`
"We know, which is why you'll serve as a combat assistant…I spoke with Nezu about it…although we'd like to enroll you as a student, we realize that it wouldn't be…efficient."
In other words, 115 struggled with human interaction.
He could study and retain information at astronomical levels, and was scarily efficient at battle tactics and strategy, but, according to the documents found…
"Psychiatric observations noted a lack of basic humanity that was ingrained into the Spartan candidates," Hound morosely said, at this point he was beyond fury and beyond growling, merely reading along the file. "Records show Spartans routinely showed mildly sociopathic tendencies, difficulty with socialization, etc. Except for among themselves."
"A moot point, now that Izuku is the last Spartan," Present Mic muttered, his usual flamboyant aura gone.
"I still can't fathom this…they were already getting sent on covert missions before the augmentations…" Midnight brokenly said as she stared at the documents, her eyes long dry.
"These augmentations were nothing short of human experimentation and child torture…" Chiyo said in disgust and horror.
"Apparently there were different stages of the augmentations, with them getting sent on missions to hunt down dissidents, high profile criminals and more between augmentation stages," Nezu observed, the usual spark in his eye also diminished at seeing another victim of human experimentation.
"Test runs…look at this…efficient behavior operating in hazardous situations," Ectoplasm spat out in disgust.
"Indeed."
"The armor that they were bestowed with is highly advanced, nearing I-Island level of tech," Powerloader commented as he looked over the schematics.
"Are we sure that we should let him keep it?" Eraserhead asked, worried about such high-tech armor being used in the vicinity of students.
"He has shown…negative responses to even removing it temporarily, according to the files, they were conditioned to wear it constantly, serving as a second skin. So much so that they feel naked without it," Hound said with a small growl. "We'd be setting back his rehabilitation by doing so…he must make the choice for himself."
"The question is…can he even be rehabilitated? I hate to say it…but all evidence suggests that he is, at his core, broken," Eraserhead commented, many of the other teachers silently agreeing.
"We must at least try…what of the package that came in the mail? For him?" Toshinori sighed as he massaged his forehead.
"Whatever this data chip contains has resisted all attempts at discovering its secrets, even with my quirk, I have not been able to break in. I would consider it almost alive…most curious," Nezu commented as he observed the chip.
"Dr. Halsey has so far…not shown us any reason to doubt her sincerity. If this is supposed to help him…I say we give it to him…he might know what to do with it," Midnight suggested. Although it was a worrying prospect, they knew that eventually they would have to tell him about it.
"Perhaps…"
Izuku-115 sat in his room in U.A., some obscure part of him feeling that he should be…excited? Happy? Animated? For whatever reason he couldn't think why he was feeling as such.
So for now, he decided to simply be…content.
His room was spartan in nature, as was trained into him, having only the most basic of necessities.
But he did not mind the pillow and comforter, although he did not use them often.
A beeping light alerted him to a console, it appeared that he was receiving a message.
"Sierra-115, report to the conference room."
"Yes, sir."
Quickly making his way over to said conference room, 115 opened the door and walked in before standing at attention and saluting All Might, the latter grimacing as he returned the salute and ordered him to stand at ease.
"Sierra-agh…115, before we continue, is there a particular way you prefer to be addressed?" Toshinori asked, hoping that they could use something other than his…serial number.
"Sir…Sierra-115 is more than adequate…however, 115 or Jotoheiso is also acceptable," He stated.
"Jotoheiso?" Midnight asked, confused and unfamiliar with the term. As were many others in the room.
"Ah…I was wondering when we would get to that," Nezu commented. "In order to give their missions some sense of legitimacy, they had them classified as covert military ops. Sierra-115 is not only registered with the Japanese military, he is also a Chief Petty Officer, the highest enlisted rank of the Japanese Navy."
"And with the rise of heroes, barely anybody pays attention to the military nowadays…" Snipe said as he lowered his hat over his eyes.
"But…so young?"
"My combat record is a testament to my skill and rank, Midnight-sensei," 115 interjected.
"That's not the point…" Midnight sighed before Hound softly shook his head at her and they dropped the subject.
"Now to the matter at hand…115, we've recently received a package for you from Dr. Halsey," Nezu said before passing over the chip.
Many noticed the subtle shift in his body language which appeared to be a good sign.
He took the chip with a gentleness that didn't seem normal for someone designed to be a killing machine and inserted it into a slot in the back of his helmet.
A familiar chill filled his brain and he softly smiled.
"Well…it took you long enough."
115 gave a sort of breathing chuckle, something so short and miniscule that had they not been paying attention they wouldn't have noticed it.
"115…who was that?" Nezu asked and 115 extended his hand.
The hand began to light up and formed a beautiful woman made out of blue light, coding going up and down her body.
"Hi there…it's nice to meet you all, although I'd prefer not having my mind attacked again," The construct waved, although everybody was too shocked to say anything.
"My word…" Nezu said as he got closer," A living artificial intelligence…"
"And I must say…I've never had the pleasure of meeting a quirked animal before," The construct said as she too began to inspect the being in front of her.
"Greetings, I am MLS 2018-7, but you can call me Melissa."
"I was created by Dr. Amanda Shield by literally scanning her brain and adapting it into a digital frame with Dr. Halsey's help…although the process…left side effects. After my 'birth' for lack of a better word, I was placed into a deep storage in order to prolong my lifespan, after which, I was then assigned to Spartan-115 to assist him and his team during their missions…" At this the AI then grew disheartened. "They're all gone…right?""
Nezu grimly nodded.
"According to the records we retrieved, the final augmentation stage was too much…all the other children were killed from the strain."
Melissa bowed her head and her projection even began to change color in fury.
"I warned him. I WARNED THAT IDIOT OF A DIRECTOR THAT THE FINAL STAGE WOULD BE TOO MUCH!" Melissa screamed as she fell to her knees.
"All my projections…all my calculations said that if they went through with the final stage, the strain would be too much for their bodies. The augmentations were basically the equivalent of artificial quirks being implanted into somebody that already has a quirk."
"And they didn't listen to you," Nezu commented sadly.
"No…and now…" Melissa said as she turned to face 115.
"I'm the last," 115 simply stated although if one were to look closely they would notice how he was much tenser and how his armor creaked around his fist.
"Izuku…I'm so sorry…"
A few of the teachers perked up at hearing him being called by his name, although noting the lack of a reaction, made them question the exact relationship between the two.
"I'll be fine. We have a new mission now," 115 replied as he gently raised his thumb so that she could pretend to hold it.
"You know we're not done talking about this…right?"
"...let's focus on the now, Melissa."
Hound was immensely pleased, it seemed that perhaps rehabilitation was possible after all, but they would have to depend heavily on the efforts of the AI.
"Either way, lay it on us."
Nezu looked at the other teachers and they all nodded, turning back to face the soldier, he began to propose his idea.
"It is obvious that to enroll you as a student would be an inefficient use of your abilities, nor can we send you out into the full world without a support network, which is why we propose that you spend your time at UA learning to interact with your peers by serving as a teacher's aid."
"...A teacher's aid?" 115 asked bewildered.
"Indeed, there's no need to worry, you'll be working on teaching combat applications rather than anything else."
"Sir…why me?"
"To be completely honest, 115. We want to help you. We desire your rehabilitation, however we also know that it will be a long process, as such we feel it best that a mutual partnership can assist both of our goals."
…
115 was pensive…he honestly wasn't sure if he should accept this offer. But then something in the back of his mind reared its head and he could slightly remember…
'I…Heroes…the best!'
"What do you think, Izuku?" Melissa asked through their private comm.
"Fine…but I need my weapons."
"I'm sure that we can come to an arrangement."
115 was suddenly very wary of the grin on Nezu's face.
"So, since you've all managed to stay, barring one," Aizawa said, all of them chilling at the recent expulsion, "it's time to introduce you to two other people."
In walked the hulking, armored figure who scanned the classroom before nodding.
"This is Spartan," Aizawa introduced with a wave of his hand. "He's a special case that UA is dealing with, you can either address him as Spartan, Sierra-115, 115 or Jotoheiso. He'll be serving as a teacher's aid with a specialization in combat applications and tactics."
115 merely nodded in greeting.
"..."
"Don't mind him, he just prefers to let his actions speak for him," Another voice called out, much to everyone's confusion.
"And now, I introduce you to his partner, Melissa."
"Hello everyone! You can't see me, but I can see you."
115 then extended his hand, revealing her.
"Ooh, now you can!"
"Melissa will be in charge of analysis and strategy."
"A pleasure to meet you all, I hope that we can work great together!
"Sir, incoming," 115 said as he grabbed his rifle and prepared himself.
"Hey, what's going on? Are those-"
"Villains! Everybody stand back, Thirteen, guard the students! I'll-" A green blur interrupted Aizawa and they were forced to watch in shock as 115 leaped over the stairs and landed on the courtyard.
Barely a moment passed before 115 immediately sprung into action, rolling straight into a firing stance and shooting the villains.
He was careful, per Nezu's instructions he couldn't do fatal blows.
But there were plenty of ways to make people hurt.
"Who is this guy?!"
"Is he even a hero!? He's shooting us!"
115 moved from place to place, shooting villains down before they could even react. Truth be told, it was honestly ridiculous how a man of that size could move so fast.
Within not even a minute, over two dozen villains had been fully incapacitated.
And more were joining them.
"What the hell? Who is this guy?"
"I do not know, Shigaraki Tomura, he was not on the records."
"Well he's pissing me off!"
115 moved smoothly between each adversary, bullet after bullet dealing wounds that, while grievous, were recoverable from.
Kurogiri was about to move so that he could scatter the students, but in the blink of an eye, 115 was already on top of him and driving his fist deep into Kurogiri's collar.
'How…did he…' Kurogiri's mind went blank as he passed out near instantly.
Shigaraki gasped as almost immediately 115 was upon him, fist at the ready only for Nomu to protect him just in time.
"Nomu! Kill him!"
Nomu swiped its arm and time began to slow down from 115's point of view as all of his enhancements worked together to bring him to optimal efficiency.
The fist went over his head and 115 was quick to counterattack, striking multiple heavy blows into the beast's body only for it to not budge a single inch.
115 registered what the villain was spouting off, if this truly was something on par with All Might then he needed to get rid of it now.
The next few minutes were nothing more but a dance of death with 115 toeing the line with
every step.
But 115 had a plan, and it would probably hurt very much.
"Izuku don't you dare-"
Too late, using an extended arm as a springboard, he got up to Nomu's face and shoved something deep into its throat.
Unfortunately, as he leaped back he was wide open for the punch that directly impacted his chest plate and sent him flying into the stairs.
"IZUKU!" Melissa cried out as he cratered the stairs, various warnings and alarms beeping as everything in his suit was practically crashing; shields, sensors, life support, everything.
Izuku slightly groaned in pain, unconsciousness already reaching for him. He could feel the armor pressing into his ribcage, and even that had been broken, blood filling up his mouth as he coughed it out into the helmet.
Shigaraki was laughing.
BOOM!
And then he wasn't.
"WHAT THE HELL!? NO!" Shigaraki screamed as he saw Nomu's headless corpse stand for a moment before tipping over.
As he suspected, protected on the outside, but nothing for the inside.
Shigaraki ranted and screamed and even began to charge at 115, hoping to disintegrate him.
115 couldn't even move to defend himself, and he didn't know what the manchild was capable of.
Seeing him trail his hand across the floor and it disintegrating made him a bit worried.
"IZUKU! Can you hear me!? Say something!?" He heard Melissa cry out.
And Izuku knew that there was one last thing he needed to do.
So with the last of his strength, he reached up for the chip.
"IZUKU! NO! DON'T YOU DARE! IZU-"
The silence was horrible, but if it meant she lived, then he could bear to live with it for the next few seconds.
"DIE HERO!"
BANG BANG BANG
Shigaraki screamed in agony as he was shot by Snipe, the rest of the teachers with him, he would soon be swept away by a Kurogiri who finally woke up.
Various threats and curses came out of him as he disappeared but 115 paid no attention to them.
Or rather, the voices were fading rapidly, even though he could feel them coming closer.
He could feel somebody take off his helmet, blood dripping out of it onto the ground.
He could feel himself being lifted by strong arms and taken away.
By that point however, he welcomed the black.
Katsuki was still…horrified, shocked, in fact all kinds of emotions swirling through him.
When he saw 115 take that hit he was terrified.
When he saw the beast's head explode into blood and gore he was relieved.
Seeing the main villain charge at 115, with the latter barely able to raise his arm terrified him again and he was too far away to do anything.
And when the teachers came in with reinforcements, he alongside everyone else was relieved.
But now he was horrified and confused.
Because as they took off 115's helmet, he recognized that face.
Those green eyes, now dull with bloodloss, and the hair as short as it was.
The diamond patterned freckles.
He'd recognize that face anywhere.
"...Izuku?"